Marie's weather forecast showed 80% chance of rain all day. Roy's showed that it would stay below 50% until mid-afternoon. We made it to Hancock, Maryland, dampened only by humidity.
Today we cheated. By riding 53 miles on a combination of roads, the C&O, and a paved rail trail, we advanced ourselves 65 miles down the C&O to Hancock, Maryland. We enjoyed cycling on the smooth, wide-shouldered roads, even though they were hilly. We saw our first cornfields. The corn was knee high.
In Williamsport, we lunched at the Desert Rose Cafe, a very friendly estblishment. They offered to fill our water bottles, and the menu had a sandwich called the bicyclist special, which we had to order.
When we returned to the towpath, we were grateful for the shade and the flat. After a dozen miles, we were equally grateful to turn off on to a road to tour Fort Frederick, which dates back to 1756 and the French and Indian War.
From there we wended our way to the beginning of the Western Maryland Rail Trail, which brought us to the center of Hancock. The WMRT is a paved Roman road, straight as the eye can see, paralleling the towpath.
When we arrived at the 1828 Trail Inn in Hancock, we were delighted by the bike washing and bike storage facilities, the washer and dryer, the cheese and crackers and homemade cookies, our room, and the dinner recommendation.
The rain didn't start until we were safely ensconced in the restaurant, enjoying a bottle of wine.